Plural lamp-socket.



N. WEEKS.

PLUEAL LAMP SOCKET.

APPLICATION IILEDYOOT. 12, 1904.

Patented Nov. 5, 1912.

' citizen of the United New York. in the county New York and UNITED stares PATENT NELsoN WEEKS, or NEW YORK, N. Y., ASSIGNOR TUBING COMPANY, or carcass, ILLINcIs,

TO BENJAMIN ELECTRIC MANUFAC- A GURPORATIO-N OF ILLINOIS.

PLURAL LAMP-SOCKET.

v Specification of- Letters Patent. Application filed October 12, 1904.

Patented Nov. 5, 1912, Serial No. 228,176.

To all whom it may concern: Be it known that I, NELSON WEEKS, a States, residing at State of New York, have invented new and.

useful Improvements in Plural Lamp Sockets, of which the following is a full,

clear, concise, and exact description, reference being had to the accompanying drawing, forming a part of this specification.

My invention relates. to plural lamp sockets and has for one of its objects the production of a filled, or molded cluster adapted to mechanically support and electrically-connect a plurality of incandescent electric lamps in circuit.

In accordance with my invention, I provide a body of suitable plastic material possessing insulating properties and I embed therein a plurality of lamp receivers and associated contacts arranged in clustered form, the same being connected in the desired electrical relation by means of conductors likewise embedded 1n the body of plastic material; binding posts are mounted exterior to the body of plasticmaterial and connected with the socket contacts by electrical conductors. In order to protect the body of plasticmaterial against injury and to providea finishing, I have shown a casing upon the exterior of the body of plastic material having suitable openings opposite the lamp receivers to accommodate the passage of the lamp bases.

I preferably provide insulating bushings secured to the exterior of the threaded shells of the lamp receivers, the inner ends of thebushings being embedded. in the body. of

plasticmaterial, while the outer ends project through the openings in the casing.

:1 preferably provide a metallic back plate upon the rear of the body of plastic material, which serves as the support for the cluster. The back plate may be providedwith a threaded aperture or other suitable means for the attachment of a condu t. In practice, I preferably mount "the binding posts at the rear of the cluster, although.

this location is not. essential, and the bind ing posts-may be otherwise disposed. The

binding posts should preferably be normally inclosedand I may accomplish this bythe provision of a removable cover which will ordinarily inclose. the birid-ing posts,

which may be removed or withdrawn to afford access to the binding posts. This cover may, at the same time, form a finishing cap for the rear of the cluster. 'hen the back plate is employed upon the rea of the cluster, Ifpreferably provide openings therethrough, within which the binding posts are situated. hen the binding posts ture, Nor do I wish to confine myself to a cluster containing all of the features of invention which are present in this particular structure. I shall, therefore, describe the device as a whole, subsequently pointing out in the claims the several features of invention, upon which I desire pro tection, referring to the drawings, in which-- Figure l is a sectional view taken on the line 1 1 of Fig. 2; Fig. 2 is a sectional view taken on the line 2-2 of Fig. 1;. and Fig.

3 is a detailed View 'With the upper cap or casing removed.

In the drawings like reference numerals are used todesignate similar parts in the several figures. e

In the form of my invention illustrated in-the drawings, a thin metal cap or casing 1 is provided, preferably semi-spherical in form,'although any desired form of casing may beused,fthe peripheral edge of said casing being preferably turned or spun over a bead formed upon the metal disk 2,-said disk having, an upwardly extending screwthreaded portion 3 adapted to receive the screw-threaded end of a pipe or conduit, said conduitbeing adapted to secure the cluster in position and to serve as achannel for admitting the-leading-in wires to their respective'bindingscrews. The cap .or casingl has a plurllity of apertures concentrically arranged therein, adapted to accom-- inodate screw-threaded lamp receiving shells 5.

Internally screw-threaded insulated bushings (l, .6, are disposed between the lamp receiving shells 5, and the apertures in the casing 11 to insulate s'aid shells therefrom. Said bushings preferably have a shoulder formed upon the outer edge thereof, adapted toetlectually close the aperture in the casing 1, though this is not essential and it will be understood that any suitable insulatingmeans may be used in lieu of the insulating bushings above descrlbed'. The

lamp receiving shells hare inturned annular flanges 7, 7 formed thereon, a disk of mica 8 being preferably disposed in the bottom of each of said shells, a second disk of mica 9 being placed upon the exterior of said inturne'd annular flanges, said disks of insulating material being adapted to protect the filling to be hereinafter described, and to retain said filling within the casing l.

The center lamp contacts 10, 10, are

supporting the center lamp contacts and forprotecting the filling in the casing 1, may be adopted in lieu of the mica plates or disks 8 and 9.

The contact plate 12 carries a binding screw 13 for making connection with one of the leading-in'wires 14: and a similar contact plate 15 is secured in any suitable man-- ner to one of the lamp receiving-shells 5, said plate carrying a binding screw 16, for making connection with the other leadingin wire 17. The metal disk 2 which constitutes the back or supporting plate has a cut outportion 18, extending throu h the upwardly extending screw-threade' portion 3 thereof, as shown in Fig. 2, said cut-out portion of the disk 2 being adapted to permit the leading-in wires to be readily connected to their respective binding screws.

An annular conductor 19, preferably of wire, is soldered or secured, in any suitable manner, to the lamp receiving shells 5, 5. and is adapted to electrically connect said shells and the contact plate 15. A similar conductor 20 is secured to the nuts 11, 11,

' connected with the center contacts for the lamps, and is adapted to electrically connect said center contacts with the contact plate 12,. The wires constituting the electrical connectors may be arranged to connect the several socket contacts in any desired circuit a rra n gement.

After the above elements have been placed in their proper relative posit1ons within the casing 1, a melted insulating compound 21,

is poured into said casing. The melted com pound runs in and about the different parts of the cluster, said compound being adapted to readily cool and-harden and is adapted to support the parts of the cluster securely within the casing, and in their proper relations one to the other, and to insulate the live parts ofithe cluster from the metal disk 2 and the inclosing casing 1. I prefer to use a compound of paraffin, rosin and pitch. although any suitable material that will reach ily harden sufficiently to support the internal parts of the socket in their relative positions, and that will insulate the conductors and other live parts of the socket, may be adopted in lieu of the compound abme mentioned. An aperture 26 may be left in the center of thesocket for the purpose of economy in the filling 21 and to lighten the weight of the cluster. although the entire body of the cluster may-be filled, if desired.

Instead of molding the plastic material within a casing, as above mentioned, it may be molded in any desired manner to procure a body of plastic material with the clustered lampreceiring shells, center contacts and.

elect 'ical conductors embedded therein, and in electrical connection with the bindingposts arranged upon the exterior of the body of plastic materiah A metal inclosing cap the socnehadapted to rest upon the disk 2, the edges thereof preferably overlapping the casing 1, said capharing a central aperture therein, th'roughwhicli the conduit or supportingpipe 4 is adapted to pass and being secured in position upon the disk 2 by a set screw 23, adapted to engage said conduit. Byremoying or withdrawing the cap or cover 22, access may be gained to the binding posts which are normally inclosed thereby.

Sliding covers 24, 24, are adapted to close the aperture 18,.formed in the disk 2, and to insulate the binding screws 13-and 16 from the inclosing cap 22. Said'corers are I d 115 are adapted to turn upon sald screws to afsecured to the disk 2 by screws 25,

ford-access to the binding posts 13 and 16 when the cap 22 is removed, as shown in I have illustrated and described one method of embodying my inrention'm a practical lamp cluster and have referred pz'trticularly' to the details of construction, but I am aware that said details are not, important, except for the purpose of rerealmg my 1nreution to others, and in practice I claim 5 the right to make such changes in the construt-tion herein shown and described, as

fairly fall within'ihescope of my invention.

Haring described my invention what 1 22 is provided for claim as new and desire to Patent is:

1. In a cluster lamp socket, a body of secure by Letters plastic or moldable'material, clustered lamp receiving shells, contacts and electrical connectors embedded therein, binding posts associated with said electrical conducting parts and situated exterior to said body of plastic material, and a supporting or back plate upon the rear of said body-of plastic material.

2. In a cluster lamp socket, a body of plastic or moldable material, clustered lamp receiving shells, contacts and electrical connectors embedded therein, binding posts associated with said electrical conducting parts and situated exterior to said body of plastic material, and a back plate secured to the rear of said, ody of plastic material and provided with a conduit-receiving aperture.

3. In a cluster lamp socket, a body of plastic orimoldable material, clustered lamp receivingshells, contacts and electricalconnectors embedded therein, asso iated exterior binding posts, and a finishing casing or covering having openings opposite the respective lamp receiving shells to accommodate the lamp bases.

4. In a cluster lamp socket,a body of plastic or moldable material, clustered lamp receiving shells, contacts and electrical connectors embedded therein, associated exterior binding posts, a finishing casing or coverlng having openings opposite the respective lamp receiving shells, and insulatingbushings surrounding said Shells having the inner ends embedded in said plastic material and the outer ends extending through the openings. in said casing.

i '-5. A cluster lamp socket comprising a body of plastic or moldable' material, clus tered lamp receiving shells, contacts and electrical conductors embedded therein, associated binding posts upon the rear of said body of plastic material, a supporting back plate, and a detachable cover cooperating with said back plate and adapted to norwithin said casing, an insulating filling for mon to said lamp holding devices and con-- tacts, and a removableinsulating cover for said binding screws. v

8. In a plural lamp socket, the combination with a suitable inclosing casing, having a plurality of apertures formed therein, lamp holding devices registering wlth sald apertures, insulating bushings disposed between said casing and said devices, an insulating filling for said casing, said filling being adapted to mechanically support said de *vices and their associated parts'in position.

In witnesswhereof, I have hereunto subsaid casing, a pair of binding screws comscribed my name in the presence of two witnesses. y A NELSON'WEEKS.

Witnesses:

SEWARD DAVIS, OLIVER WILLIAMS. 

